Abbott and Costello - All The Tropes Abbott and Costello Quotes Fanfic Recs Analysis Trivia WMG Image Links Haiku Laconic /wiki/Abbott and Costellocreator "Hey, Abboooooooott!" Bud Abbott and Lou Costello were a Comedy Duo who worked together from 1935 to 1957, starting out in Burlesque theatre and expanding into radio, television and films. They're best known for their signature routine, "Baseball", in which Abbott attempts to tell Costello about a baseball team whose players have confusing nicknames like "Who" and "What". ("Who's on first?" "Yes.") In 1940 they appeared together in a supporting role in the film One Night in the Tropics, and stole the show. The following year, they had their first star vehicle, Buck Privates. They went on to make over 30 films, remaining top-10 box office draws for the next decade.

A list of their films: One Night in the Tropics (1940) Buck Privates (1941) Lost in a Harem (1944) Abbott and Costello in Hollywood (1945) Here Come the Co-Eds (1945) The Naughty Nineties (1945) The Time of Their Lives (1946) Buck Privates Come Home (1947) The Wistful Widow of Wagon Gap (1947) The Noose Hangs High (1948) Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff (1949) Africa Screams (1949) Abbott and Costello in the Foreign Legion (1950) Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man (1951) Comin' Round the Mountain (1951) Lost in Alaska (1952) Jack and the Beanstalk (1952) Abbott and Costello Meet Captain Kidd (1952) Abbott and Costello Go to Mars (1953) Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr.

Hyde (1953) Abbott and Costello Meet the Keystone Kops (1955) Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy (1955) Dance with Me Henry (1956) Not to be confused with Tony Abbott and Peter Costello, a pair of Australian politicians who served as ministers under Prime Minister John Howard at the same time. Contents Other Abbott and Costello works provide examples of:[ edit | hide ] Abhorrent Admirer : Moonbeam in Ride 'Em Cowboy, and the widow in The Wistful Widow of Wagon Gap. Accidental Aiming Skills : Oliver's (Lou's) final shot at the basket in Here Come the Co-Eds. Adorkable : Often used in their movies: Costello's goofy, bumbling, buffoonish charm generally makes the women he meets fall for how adorable he is - despite being a goof Costello always gets the girl in situations where the two are involved in romance. All Amazons Want Hercules : In Abbott and Costello Go To Mars, Lou falls in love with the Amazonian Queen of Venus, a love she reciprocates...

until his inability to keep his hands off of her subjects, and his cohorts' foolish attempt at staging a palace revolt, gets them all shipped back to Earth. Animated Adaptation : Abbott and Costello, made by Hanna-Barbera in 1966. Abbott voiced himself; Stan Irwin stood in for the late Costello. Berserk Button : In the "Bagel Street" routine ("Susquehanna Hat Company!") References in other works:[ edit | hide ] Looney Tunes parodied them in three cartoons as "Babbit and Catstello". They also borrowed some of Lou's catch phrases and made them their own, like "I'm only three-and-a-half years old" and Bugs Bunny 's "Gee, ain't I a stinker?" In the "Vintage Steele" episode of Remington Steele a body is found in a vat of wine at the Costello Monastery. When Laura suggests they interview the abbot, Movie buff Steele quips "Ah...the Abbot of Costello". Robin Hood: Men in Tights has a scene where an abbot is greeted with Costello's catchphrase. Abbot: I hate that guy...

If you didn't see some similarities between Ren and Stimpy and Abbot And Costello , you weren't paying close enough attention. The Gummi Bears episode "Friar Tum" features a character named Abbot Costello. The Dragaera novel Five Hundred Years has a passing mention of a famous farce, Who Dropped Her First?, set in a bedchamber laid out (reading between the lines) like a baseball diamond. The Futurama episode "A Pharaoh to Remember" has a reference to Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy. Mother 3 features a duo of comedians named Lou and Bud as minor characters. An anonymous email that has been circulating around the internet for many years casts Abbott as a tech-support operator attempting to explain to Costello that to stop his Windows PC he must click on the "Start" button. In Australia, the days when Tony Abbott and Peter Costello were prominent members of the Liberal Party were a gift to political commentators across the country. One episode of Veggie Tales featured Larry and Mr. Lunt's characters having a battle of wits, with the riddle they must solve being presented by the Abbot of Costello. The riddle itself is a parody of the Who's on First?

routine. In the Batman the Animated Series episode "Joker's Millions", Joker named his loyal pet hyenas Bud and Lou (previously only known as Harley Quinn's "babies"). This makes sense, given Joker's appreciation of comedy. The hyenas are given the same names in Krypto the Superdog . In the Hercules: The Legendary Journeys episode, "Monster Child In A Promised Land," Iolaus mentions a comedy team known as Abbotus and Costellocles. A recurring segment on Square One TV featured Cabot and Marshmallow . Set backstage at a Vaudeville theater, the segments show Cabot getting the better of Marshmallow through a variety of math related tricks. Always started with a suitably altered version of Costello's catch phrase. Abbott & Costello E-mail james@movietreasures.com for PRICES, AUTHENTICITY, HISTORY and SPECIAL DISCOUNTS Abbott & Costello "Abbott & Costello Meet Captain Kidd" Original Vintage Belgian Poster w/ Censors Stamp dated 1954 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mini biography Abbott worked in carnivals while still a child and dropped out of school in 1909.

He worked as assistant treasurer for the Casino Theater in Brooklyn, then as treasurer or manager of various theaters around the country. He worked as straight man to vaudeville performers such as Harry Steepe and Harry Evanson while managing the National Theater in Detroit, and, in 1931 while cashiering at the Brooklyn theater, he substituted for comic Lou Costello's ill straightman. The two formed their famous comedy team and, through the 1930s, they worked burlesque, minstrel shows, vaudeville and movie houses. In 1938 they got national exposure through the 'Kate Smith' Hour radio show, and signed with Universal the next year for their film debut in One Night in the Tropics (1940). Their 1941 movie Buck Privates (1941), with the Andrews Sisters, grossed what was then a company record $10 million, and in 1942 they topped a poll of Hollywood stars.

They had their own radio show (ABC, 1941-6, NBC, 1946-9) and TV show (_"Abbott and Costello Show, The" (1952)). After the war their movies shifted formula to one in which they met various monsters or found themselves in exotic locations. The team split up in 1957 with both members completely out of money after troubles with the Internal Revenue Service. Abbott started over with a new partner, Candy Candido, in the 1960s but failed. In 1966 he did voice for a cartoon version of their television show. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 'Betty Smith' (17 September 1918 - 24 April 1974) (his death); 2 adopted children -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- He was cremated and his ashes scattered in the Pacific Ocean -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- One Night in the Tropics (1940) $17,500 Biography from Leonard Maltin's Movie Encyclopedia: Actors. (Bud Abbott-b. Oct. 2, 1895, Asbury Park, N.J., as William A. Abbott; d. Apr.

24, 1974. Lou Costello-b. Mar. 6, 1906, Paterson, N.J., as Louis Francis Cristillo; d. Mar. 3, 1959.) The most successful comedy team of the 1940s, Abbott and Costello consistently made the yearly list of filmdom's top 10 moneymakers, and while their popularity among moviegoers waned during the 1950s, the boys won over new generations of fans with a TV series and endless reruns of their old movies. Abbott-the tall, jowly, fast-talking straight man-was born to circus performers but didn't have much success breaking into show business himself until 1931 when, as a Brooklyn theater cashier, he filled in for Costello's usual straight man. The short, chubby Costello-a former newsboy, soda jerk, and salesman whose brief, late 1920s fling in Hollywood only got him some stunt and extra work (in, among others, the 1927 Laurel & Hardy comedy The Battle of the Centurydeveloped an instant rapport with Abbott.

They subsequently worked together in burlesque, vaudeville, on Broadway, and on radio, polishing their act to a high gloss, before getting their first joint Hollywood opportunity in Universal's One Night in the Tropics (1940). Although they were only supporting players, they stole the show with their rapid-fire cross-talk routines (including the classic "Who's on First?"). Universal starred the team in a lowbudget 1941 comedy, Buck Privates its enormous (and unexpected) success convinced the studio they were bona-fide stars. In the Navy, Hold That Ghost, Keep 'Em Flying (also 1941), Ride 'Em Cowboy, Pardon My Sarong, Who Done It? (all 1942), It Ain't Hay, Hit the Ice (both 1943), In Society (1944), and Here Come the Co-eds (1945) followed. The films were short on characterization, but long on slapstick (mostly featuring the agile Costello) and beautifully timed patter routines (many of which were cleaned-up burlesque skits written or polished by their personal writer John Grant).

MGM borrowed the team several times, for Rio Rita (1942, which saw the boys in roles taken by Wheeler & Woolsey in the 1929 original), Lost in a Harem (1944) and Bud Abbott and Lou Costello in Hollywood (1945), none of which achieved the suc cess of the Universal efforts despite significantly higher production expenditures. A restless Costello prodded Universal to break their formula, and the studio started experimenting with The Naughty Nineties (1945), a period piece that included a reprise of "Who's on First?" Little Giant and the more successful The Time of Their Lives (both 1946) had Bud and Lou working independently of each other. Subsequent films were hit-and-miss: The Wistful Widow of Wagon Gap, Buck Privates Come Home (both 1947), a sequel to their first hit, The Noose Hangs High (1948), released by Eagle-Lion but produced at Universal (and a remake of a little-known studio B picture from 1939, For Love or Money Then someone concocted Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948).

The blend of comedy and horror (with Frankenstein, Dracula, and The Wolf Man on hand) was just right, and the film propelled Bud and Lou back to the top of the box-office heap. Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff (1949), Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man (1951), Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1953, also costarring Karloff), and Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy (1955) utilized the same format, albeit with progressively diminishing results.

None of the team's other starring vehicles-which included Mexican Hayride (1948, a curiously disemboweled version of a hit play with Cole Porter music), Africa Screams (1949), Abbott and Costello in the Foreign Legion (1950), Comin' Round the Mountain (1951), the kiddie-oriented Jack and the Beanstalk, Lost in Alaska, Abbott and Costello Meet Captain Kidd (all 1952), Abbott and Costello Go to Mars (1953), Abbott and Costello Meet the Keystone Kops (1955), and Dance With Me, Henry (1956)-was particularly noteworthy. By this time their popularity had been eclipsed by the younger, wilder team of Martin and Lewis. They still proved potent on TV, however, on "The Colgate Comedy Hour" (1951-54) and "The Abbott and Costello Show" (1952-54), in the latter performing many of the routines originally written for their films.

The team split up in 1956 and Lou, who reportedly harbored solo starring ambitions for years, top-lined the mediocre The 30-Foot Bride of Candy Rock just before his death in 1959. Abbott, a lifelong epileptic whose steadily deterio rating health finally sent him to a nursing home, was reduced to poverty after the IRS nailed him for back taxes. He loaned his voice to a 1966 series of Abbott and Costello animated cartoons. Biography for -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mini biography After finishing high school Lou worked as a carpenter at MGM and Warners. He went from there to stuntman and then to vaudeville as a comic. In 1931 while working in Brooklyn, his straightman became ill and the theater cashier, Bud Abbott, filled in for him. The two formed their famous comedy team and, through the 1930s, they worked burlesque, minstrel shows, vaudeville and movie houses. In 1938 they got national exposure through the Kate Smith (I) Hour radio show, and signed with Universal the next year for their film debut in One Night in the Tropics (1940).

Their 1941 movie Buck Privates (1941), with the Andrews Sisters, grossed what was then a company record $10 million, and in 1942 they topped a poll of Hollywood stars. They had their own radio show (ABC, 1941-6, NBC, 1946-9) and TV show ("Abbott and Costello Show, The" (1952)). After the war their movies shifted formula to one in which they met various monsters or found themselves in exotic locations. The team split up in 1957 with both members completely out of money after troubles with the Internal Revenue Service. After that Lou appeared in a few television shows and the movie 30 Foot Bride of Candy Rock, The (1959), released the year he died. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 'Anne Battlers' (1934 - 3 March 1959) (his death); 3 children -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Trivia Founded the Television Corporation of America production company which produced "Abbott and Costello Show, The" (1952) and "I'm the Law" (1953).

Children, with Battlers, Carole, Patricia, Lou Jr. (1942) His only son, Lou Jr, tragically drowned just days before his first birthday Father of Carole Costello (I). -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- One Night in the Tropics (1940) $17,500 Biography from Leonard Maltin's Movie Encyclopedia: Actors. (Bud Abbott-b. Oct. 2, 1895, Asbury Park, N.J., as William A. Abbott; d. Apr. 24, 1974. Lou Costello-b. Mar. 6, 1906, Paterson, N.J., as Louis Francis Cristillo; d. Mar. 3, 1959.) The most successful comedy team of the 1940s, Abbott and Costello consistently made the yearly list of filmdom's top 10 moneymakers, and while their popularity among moviegoers waned during the 1950s, the boys won over new generations of fans with a TV series and endless reruns of their old movies.

Abbott-the tall, jowly, fast-talking straight man-was born to circus performers but didn't have much success breaking into show business himself until 1931 when, as a Brooklyn theater cashier, he filled in for Costello's usual straight man. The short, chubby Costello-a former newsboy, soda jerk, and salesman whose brief, late 1920s fling in Hollywood only got him some stunt and extra work (in, among others, the 1927 Laurel & Hardy comedy The Battle of the Centurydeveloped an instant rapport with Abbott. They subsequently worked together in burlesque, vaudeville, on Broadway, and on radio, polishing their act to a high gloss, before getting their first joint Hollywood opportunity in Universal's One Night in the Tropics (1940). Although they were only supporting players, they stole the show with their rapid-fire cross-talk routines (including the classic "Who's on First?"). Universal starred the team in a lowbudget 1941 comedy, Buck Privates its enormous (and unexpected) success convinced the studio they were bona-fide stars.

In the Navy, Hold That Ghost, Keep 'Em Flying (also 1941), Ride 'Em Cowboy, Pardon My Sarong, Who Done It? (all 1942), It Ain't Hay, Hit the Ice (both 1943), In Society (1944), and Here Come the Co-eds (1945) followed. The films were short on characterization, but long on slapstick (mostly featuring the agile Costello) and beautifully timed patter routines (many of which were cleaned-up burlesque skits written or polished by their personal writer John Grant). MGM borrowed the team several times, for Rio Rita (1942, which saw the boys in roles taken by Wheeler & Woolsey in the 1929 original), Lost in a Harem (1944) and Bud Abbott and Lou Costello in Hollywood (1945), none of which achieved the suc cess of the Universal efforts despite significantly higher production expenditures.

A restless Costello prodded Universal to break their formula, and the studio started experimenting with The Naughty Nineties (1945), a period piece that included a reprise of "Who's on First?" Little Giant and the more successful The Time of Their Lives (both 1946) had Bud and Lou working independently of each other. Subsequent films were hit-and-miss: The Wistful Widow of Wagon Gap, Buck Privates Come Home (both 1947), a sequel to their first hit, The Noose Hangs High (1948), released by Eagle-Lion but produced at Universal (and a remake of a little-known studio B picture from 1939, For Love or Money Then someone concocted Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948). The blend of comedy and horror (with Frankenstein, Dracula, and The Wolf Man on hand) was just right, and the film propelled Bud and Lou back to the top of the box-office heap. Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff (1949), Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man (1951), Abbott and Costello Meet Dr.

Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1953, also costarring Karloff), and Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy (1955) utilized the same format, albeit with progressively diminishing results. None of the team's other starring vehicles-which included Mexican Hayride (1948, a curiously disemboweled version of a hit play with Cole Porter music), Africa Screams (1949), Abbott and Costello in the Foreign Legion (1950), Comin' Round the Mountain (1951), the kiddie-oriented Jack and the Beanstalk, Lost in Alaska, Abbott and Costello Meet Captain Kidd (all 1952), Abbott and Costello Go to Mars (1953), Abbott and Costello Meet the Keystone Kops (1955), and Dance With Me, Henry (1956)-was particularly noteworthy. By this time their popularity had been eclipsed by the younger, wilder team of Martin and Lewis.

They still proved potent on TV, however, on "The Colgate Comedy Hour" (1951-54) and "The Abbott and Costello Show" (1952-54), in the latter performing many of the routines originally written for their films. The team split up in 1956 and Lou, who reportedly harbored solo starring ambitions for years, top-lined the mediocre The 30-Foot Bride of Candy Rock just before his death in 1959. Abbott, a lifelong epileptic whose steadily deterio rating health finally sent him to a nursing home, was reduced to poverty after the IRS nailed him for back taxes. He loaned his voice to a 1966 series of Abbott and Costello animated cartoons. These Items are FOR SALE to knowledgeable Collectors. Please ask all questions of provenance before purchase. Items are only exchangeable if autographs are not authentic.

E-mail james@movietreasures.com for INFORMATION Abbott and Costello | All The Tropes Wiki | Fandom powered by Wikia All The Tropes Wiki Laconic "Hey, Abboooooooott!" Bud Abbott and Lou Costello were a Comedy Duo who worked together from 1935 to 1957, starting out in Burlesque theatre and expanding into radio, television and films. They're best known for their signature routine, "Baseball", in which Abbott attempts to tell Costello about a baseball team whose players have confusing nicknames like "Who" and "What". ("Who's on first?" "Yes.") In 1940 they appeared together in a supporting role in the film One Night in the Tropics, and stole the show. The following year, they had their first star vehicle, Buck Privates. They went on to make over 30 films, remaining top-10 box office draws for the next decade.

A list of their films: One Night in the Tropics (1940) Buck Privates (1941) Lost in a Harem (1944) Abbott and Costello in Hollywood (1945) Here Come the Co-Eds (1945) The Naughty Nineties (1945) The Time of Their Lives (1946) Buck Privates Come Home (1947) The Wistful Widow of Wagon Gap (1947) The Noose Hangs High (1948) Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff (1949) Africa Screams (1949) Abbott and Costello in the Foreign Legion (1950) Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man (1951) Comin' Round the Mountain (1951) Lost in Alaska (1952) Jack and the Beanstalk (1952) Abbott and Costello Meet Captain Kidd (1952) Abbott and Costello Go to Mars (1953) Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr.

Hyde (1953) Abbott and Costello Meet the Keystone Kops (1955) Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy (1955) Dance with Me Henry (1956) Not to be confused with Tony Abbott and Peter Costello, a pair of Australian politicians who served as ministers under Prime Minister John Howard at the same time. Contents Abhorrent Admirer : Moonbeam in Ride 'Em Cowboy, and the widow in The Wistful Widow of Wagon Gap. Accidental Aiming Skills : Oliver's (Lou's) final shot at the basket in Here Come the Co-Eds. Adorkable : Often used in their movies: Costello's goofy, bumbling, buffoonish charm generally makes the women he meets fall for how adorable he is - despite being a goof Costello always gets the girl in situations where the two are involved in romance. All Amazons Want Hercules : In Abbott and Costello Go To Mars, Lou falls in love with the Amazonian Queen of Venus, a love she reciprocates... until his inability to keep his hands off of her subjects, and his cohorts' foolish attempt at staging a palace revolt, gets them all shipped back to Earth.

Animated Adaptation : Abbott and Costello, made by Hanna-Barbera in 1966. Abbott voiced himself; Stan Irwin stood in for the late Costello. Berserk Button : In the "Bagel Street" routine ("Susquehanna Hat Company!") But You Were There and You and You : Jack and the Beanstalk has Lou's character dreaming that he's Jack, with the other characters corresponding to people he knows in real life. Butt Monkey : Costello most of the time. Abbott takes this role in "The Time Of Their Lives". Catch Phrase : "Heeeeeey, Abb-ott!" Celestial Bureaucracy : in The Time of Their Lives Chain of Corrections : Several of their routines fit this trope, none more famous than " Who's on First? ." Played to perfection, the routine saw Abbott list the names of players on a baseball team to Costello, Costello constantly misinterpret the answers as non-responsive, Abbott correct him repeatedly and Costello becoming even more befuddled and confused to the point where, in the end he throws up his hands and says "I don't give a damn!" – unwittingly identifying the shortstop.

The Danza : In many of their later works, they skipped the intermediaries and just played characters named "Bud Abbott" and "Lou Costello". In Abbott And Costello Meet The Mummy, the comedians's characters were Peter Patterson and Freddie Franklin, respectively--according to the credits, anyway, which was the only place those names were used. Derailed for Details : The "Jonah and the Whale" sketch Disney Death : Several of their films include a routine in which Abbott believes Costello has been killed and laments how he treated his friend, while Costello listens and cries along with him. Once Abbott sees that he's all right, he goes back to his old self and slaps Costello for getting him so worried. Dumb Is Good : Abbott is clever and sly and Costello is usually dumb and happy or at least naive and happy-go-lucky. Elevator Floor Announcement : In an episode of their radio show. Fat and Skinny : Abbott is the skinny, clever Straight Man ; Costello is the chubby dimwit. Fun with Foreign Languages : In Lost In Alaska, Costello sees some Eskimos communicating in sign language and makes a few random hand gestures of his own.

The Eskimo chief starts laughing, telling Costello, "You just told a funny joke!" Later, when Costello meets an attractive Eskimo lady, he tries to impress her by creating the same hand gestures he used before. She slaps him in the face; apparently it was that kind of joke. Great White Hunter : Parodied in Africa Screams Handy Cuffs : One sketch involves one of them getting handcuffed with his hands in front when he points out that he can still swing his hands around. He then asks his captor to show where the cuffs need to go; the captor puts his hands behind his back, gets cuffed, and the good guy escapes. How Would You Like to Die? : In Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer Hurricane of Puns - the basis of most of their humor. Abbott: You should really go on a diet. You know what a diet is, don't you? Costello: Sure, that's where you can eat all you want of everything you don't like. Insane Troll Logic : The basis of the sketch where Costello proves that 7 x 13 = 28 . Jerkass : Abbott frequently is one to Costello.

Joisey : Lou was very proud of his hometown of Paterson, New Jersey, and managed to get it mentioned in a great deal of episodes of The Abbott And Costello Show Kitchen Sink Included : In Lost in Alaska, while throwing things at the bad guys to keep them from advancing, Abbott says they've thrown everything but the kitchen sink. Guess what Costello does. Lady Land : Venus, as depicted in Abbott and Costello Go To Mars Large Ham : Lou Costello, especially on radio. Mistaken for An Imposter : Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy Never Say That Again : The "Slowly I turned..." variant was used by Abbott and Costello several times: in the films Lost In a Harem with the trigger word "Pokomoko", and In Society with the trigger phrase "Susquehanna Hat Company", as well as in The Abbott and Costello Show on television, using the more traditional " Niagara Falls ". Non-Indicative Name : Abbott and Costello Go To Mars, in which Abbott and Costello go to Venus. Also, Abbott and Costello Meet The Killer, Boris Karloff, in which the killer is not Boris Karloff.

Not-So-Harmless Villain : Costello's not the sharpest tool in the shed, but he's not exactly stupid either, and Depending on the Writer he sometimes has scenes where he skillfully outwits people who only think he's just a moron - Whodunit in particular has him do this several times during the climax. Obfuscating Stupidity : Very rarely, Costello is portrayed or merely implied as having this. Or more like he acts like a moron but he can be pretty quick when he wants to be. The Operators Must Be Crazy : The episode "Who Done It" has a skit about a particularly bizarre and abusive operator. Poisoned Chalice Switcheroo : In a routine involving a stolen necklace. Quick Change : Several variations. Reaching Between the Lines : Lou keeps trying to make an important call but is obstructed by the operator who keeps telling him, "The line is busy". Eventually Lou gets so frustrated that he squirts a soda siphon down the mouthpiece and the operator gets squirted in the face.

Red Herring : In Abbott and Costello Meet The Killer, Boris Karloff, the Big Bad is actually the manager of the hotel where the film takes place, not Boris Karloff's character. Rule of Pool : Played with in Hit the Ice Self-Offense : in Abbott and Costello Join the Foreign Legion Shotgun Wedding : In Ride 'Em Cowboy, the Indians suggest forcing Costello into a "bow-and-arrow wedding". The Show Must Go On : On the radio show Lou and Bud worked on, one day around the time they were working on Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein Lou came in for show late, very quiet, and went through his routines flawlessly but without speaking to anyone outside of the job, which was very unusual for him. Then at the end he said to his very young son, "That one's for you." He then explained to his fellow performers and the listeners at home that his son had drowned earlier that day, but not before Lou promised him that "Tonight you'll hear Dad on the radio." Lou kept his promise. Straight Man and Wise Guy : Abbott and Costello Tempting Fate : From Hit The Ice: "If I ever fall in love with another girl, I hope they hang me".

Cue Costello seeing a pretty girl and the mail hook of a train catching him by the neck. Tongue-Tied : Several films have Costello needed to impart some important information, usually that the movie's villain is nearby. However, while he mimes speaking the words, he's so scared that he literally cannot make any kind of audible sound. Two-Person Love Triangle : in the romantic subplot in Jack and the Beanstalk "The Villain Sucks" Song : Costello sings one in Buck Privates, although it's more of a "The Army Sucks Song". Of course, the drill sergeant is right behind him . Vitriolic Best Buds : Onscreen, this was played straight. Offscreen, though, the "Best Buds" part was questionable. Weak-Willed : In one film, a psychologist tries to hypnotize Lou Costello. Lou proves to be completely immune, but the psychologist accidentally hypnotizes himself. Then Lou wakes him up, and managed to accidentally hypnotizes him again mere seconds later. Who's on First? : In many of their routines, of which the trope namer is only the most famous.

You Kill It, You Bought It : Parodied in The Wistful Widow of Wagon Gap. References in other works: Edit Looney Tunes parodied them in three cartoons as "Babbit and Catstello". They also borrowed some of Lou's catch phrases and made them their own, like "I'm only three-and-a-half years old" and Bugs Bunny 's "Gee, ain't I a stinker?" In the "Vintage Steele" episode of Remington Steele a body is found in a vat of wine at the Costello Monastery. When Laura suggests they interview the abbot, Movie buff Steele quips "Ah...the Abbot of Costello". Robin Hood: Men in Tights has a scene where an abbot is greeted with Costello's catchphrase. Abbot: I hate that guy... If you didn't see some similarities between Ren and Stimpy and Abbot And Costello , you weren't paying close enough attention. The Gummi Bears episode "Friar Tum" features a character named Abbot Costello.

The Dragaera novel Five Hundred Years has a passing mention of a famous farce, Who Dropped Her First?, set in a bedchamber laid out (reading between the lines) like a baseball diamond. The Futurama episode "A Pharaoh to Remember" has a reference to Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy. Mother 3 features a duo of comedians named Lou and Bud as minor characters. An anonymous email that has been circulating around the internet for many years casts Abbott as a tech-support operator attempting to explain to Costello that to stop his Windows PC he must click on the "Start" button. In Australia, the days when Tony Abbott and Peter Costello were prominent members of the Liberal Party were a gift to political commentators across the country. One episode of Veggie Tales featured Larry and Mr. Lunt's characters having a battle of wits, with the riddle they must solve being presented by the Abbot of Costello. The riddle itself is a parody of the Who's on First? routine. In the Batman the Animated Series episode "Joker's Millions", Joker named his loyal pet hyenas Bud and Lou (previously only known as Harley Quinn's "babies").

This makes sense, given Joker's appreciation of comedy. The hyenas are given the same names in Krypto the Superdog . In the Hercules: The Legendary Journeys episode, "Monster Child In A Promised Land," Iolaus mentions a comedy team known as Abbotus and Costellocles. A recurring segment on Square One TV featured Cabot and Marshmallow . Set backstage at a Vaudeville theater, the segments show Cabot getting the better of Marshmallow through a variety of math related tricks. Always started with a suitably altered version of Costello's catch phrase. Abbott and Costello (Creator) - TV Tropes Abbott and Costello You need to login to do this. Get Known if you don't have an account Share Bud Abbott (left) and Lou Costello (right) "Hey, Abboooooooott!" Bud Abbott (1897ï¿½1974) and Lou Costello (1906ï¿½1959) were an American Comedy Duo who worked together from 1935 to 1957, starting out in burlesque theatre and expanding into radio, television and films.

They're best known for their signature routine, in which Abbott attempts to tell Costello about a baseball team whose players have confusing nicknames like "Who" and "What" . (" Who's on first? " " Yes. ") In 1940 they appeared together in a supporting role in the film One Night in the Tropics, and stole the show. The following year, they had their first star vehicle, Buck Privates. They went on to make over 30 films, remaining top-10 box office draws for the next decade. They also starred in The Abbott and Costello Show , a weekly sitcom-cum-sketch show that aired on radio from 1942-49 and on syndicated TV from 1952-54.

A list of their films: One Night in the Tropics (1940) Buck Privates (1941) Lost in a Harem (1944) Abbott and Costello in Hollywood (1945) Here Come the Co-Eds (1945) The Naughty Nineties (1945) The Time of Their Lives (1946) Buck Privates Come Home (1947) The Noose Hangs High (1948) Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff (1949) Africa Screams (1949) Abbott and Costello in the Foreign Legion (1950) Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man (1951) Comin' Round the Mountain (1951) Lost in Alaska (1952) Jack and the Beanstalk (1952) Abbott and Costello Meet Captain Kidd (1952) Abbott and Costello Go to Mars (1953) Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr.

Hyde (1953) Abbott and Costello Meet the Keystone Kops (1955) Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy (1955) Dance with Me Henry (1956) Not to be confused with Tony Abbott and Peter Costello, a pair of Australian politicians who served together as ministers under Prime Minister John Howard. Abbott was later the Prime Minister of Australia. Abbott and Costello works with their own trope pages: Other Abbott and Costello works provide examples of: Abhorrent Admirer : Moonbeam in Ride 'Em Cowboy, and the widow in The Wistful Widow of Wagon Gap. Accidental Aiming Skills : Oliver's (Lou's) final shot at the basket in Here Come the Co-Eds. Accidental Proposal : In Ride 'Em Cowboy, Willoughby (Lou) accidentally shoots an arrow into an Indian maiden's teepee. Tribal custom says this is a proposal of marriage and Lou and Bud spend much of the rest of the film running away from the bride-to-be and her tribe.

Adorkable : Often used in their movies: Costello's goofy, bumbling, buffoonish charm generally makes the women he meets fall for how adorable he is - despite being a goof Costello always gets the girl in situations where the two are involved in romance. Adults Dressed as Children : Joe Besser as Stinky the Spoiled Brat , who would get into hilarious spats with the equally childish Costello. All Amazons Want Hercules : In Abbott and Costello Go To Mars, Lou falls in love with the Amazonian Queen of Venus, a love she reciprocates... until his inability to keep his hands off of her subjects, and his cohorts' foolish attempt at staging a palace revolt, gets them all shipped back to Earth. It didn't help that the Queen showed her subjects holograms of the previous King, an attractive hunk; the ladies immediately lost interest in the dumpy Lou. Ancient Egypt : Although it was set in (then-)modern times, Abbott and Costello Meet The Mummy calls pretty heavily on this trope. Animated Adaptation : Abbott and Costello, made by Hanna-Barbera in 1966. Abbott voiced himself; Stan Irwin stood in for the late Costello.

And, unofficially, the Looney Tunes characters Babbit and Catstello, who started out as cats (in Bob Clampett 's A Tale of Two Kitties) before being redesigned as mice (in Frank Tashlin 's A Tale of Two Mice and Robert McKimson 's The Mouse-Merized Cat). Bad Boss : Abbott's first character in Little Giant. Bankruptcy Barrel : Lou dons one at the end of Buck Privates. Berserk Button / Never Say That Again : The "Slowly I turned..." routine was used by Abbott and Costello several times: in the films Lost In a Harem with the trigger word "Pokomoko", and In Society with the trigger phrase "Susquehanna Hat Company", as well as in The Abbott and Costello Show on television, using the more traditional " Niagara Falls ". Breaking the Fourth Wall : This exchange in It Ain't Hay: Abbott: Go answer the door. It might be Warner. Costello: It won't do no good. We're all signed up with Universal.

But You Were There, and You, and You : Jack and the Beanstalk has Lou's character dreaming that he's Jack, with the other characters corresponding to people he knows in real life. Butt Monkey : Costello most of the time. Abbott takes this role in The Time Of Their Lives. The fate of Sgt. Collins in Buck Privates Come Home. Cannot Spit It Out : Whenever Costello sees something that makes him flustered, he becomes hilariously tongue-tied and unable to explain it to Abbott. Cassandra Truth : Played with in most of the horror spoofs - the monster or ghost (and in one case, Indian chief) terrorizes Lou, but only when Bud isn't around to see it. Naturally, Bud never believes Lou. At the end of one film, Lou goes off like this: Costello: And another thing, the next time I tell you that I saw something when I saw it, YOU BELIEVE ME that I SAW it!

Motor Mouth : The reporter in Mexican Hayride who talks over Costello constantly and then tells him "Next time a reporter asks you for an interview, don't talk so much!" Non-Indicative Name : Abbott and Costello Go To Mars, in which Abbott and Costello go to Venus (though their original plan was to go to Mars). Also, Abbott and Costello Meet The Killer, Boris Karloff, in which the killer is not Boris Karloff. Perhaps also, Here Come The Co-Eds, in which the school in question is an all-girls school and so technically the girls there are not "co-eds." No Indoor Voice : Captain Kidd. Not-So-Harmless Villain : Costello's not the sharpest tool in the shed, but he's not quite as stupid as he looks either. Depending on the Writer , he sometimes has scenes where he skillfully outwits people who think he's just a moron - Whodunit in particular has him do this several times during the climax. Obfuscating Stupidity : Very rarely, Costello is portrayed or merely implied as having this. Or more like he acts like a moron but he can be pretty quick when he wants to be.

An Odd Place to Sleep : In Buck Privates Come Home, Herbie (Lou) finds it too hot to sleep inside the apartment, he rigs up a makeshift hammock on the clothes line that runs between the buildings. Old Dark House : The boys inherit an Old Dark Inn from a dead gangster in Hold That Ghost. The Operators Must Be Crazy : The episode "Who Done It" has a skit about a particularly bizarre and abusive operator. Peek-A-Boo Corpse : Happens several times in the murder mystery films, like Who Done It? and Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer. Of course, when Costello alerts Abbott or the authorities, the body is nowhere to be found. Also happens in Hold That Ghost, where Costello assumes the body is behind a hidden door, but actually falls out of the curtains next to the door. Poisoned Chalice Switcheroo : In a routine involving a stolen necklace in one film and a spiked drink in a couple others. Say My Name : HEEEEY ABBBOOOOOTTTTT! Substituted with Abbott's various character names in the movies. Self-Deprecation / Take That, Us : In Who Done It?

the duo win a radio, and they turn it on, only to hear their infamous " Who's on First? " gag. They immediately turn it off because they don't find it funny. Self Offense : in Abbott and Costello Join the Foreign Legion and Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Sequel : Buck Privates Come Home is, indeed, one of these to Buck Privates. Shotgun Wedding : In Ride 'Em Cowboy, the Indians suggest forcing Costello into a "bow-and-arrow wedding". The Show Must Go On : On the radio show Lou and Bud worked on, one day around the time they were working on Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein Lou came in for show late, very quiet, and went through his routines flawlessly but without speaking to anyone outside of the job, which was very unusual for him. Then at the end he said to his very young son, "That one's for you." He then explained to his fellow performers and the listeners at home that his son had drowned earlier that day, but not before Lou promised him that "Tonight you'll hear Dad on the radio." Lou kept his promise.

Signs of Disrepair : vote for townSEND pHELPs in Who Done It? Slapstick : A staple of their routines. Straight Man : Abbott. Generally regarded as one of the greatest, if not the greatest, straight men in the history of show business. He was so important to the team, that Costello originally insisted he get 60% of their pay. Lou Costello: Comics are a dime a dozen. Good straight men are hard to find. Unsympathetic Comedy Protagonist : At his worst, Abbott is a manipulative and selfish Jerk Ass . Villain with Good Publicity : Dr. Jekyll in Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Vitriolic Best Buds : Onscreen, this was played straight. Offscreen, though, the "Best Buds" part was questionable. The reason they have so few scenes together in Little Giant and The Time of Their Lives is because they were so estranged at that point, that was the only way they would agree to appear in the same picture. Though their relationship was strained in their later years, there were a few moments of They Really Do Love Each Other , if you knew where to look.

Abbott volunteered at Costello's charity as an attempt to bury the hatchet and, when Costello died of a heart attack, Abbott backed out of a revival project with Candy Candido playing Costello's role, claiming that there was no one who could truly replace Lou. Weak-Willed : In Abbott and Costello meet the Invisible Man, a psychologist tries to hypnotize Lou Costello. Lou proves to be completely immune, but the psychologist accidentally hypnotizes himself. Lou's efforts to explain how this happened lead to him putting half the local police force under as well. Then Lou wakes him up, and managed to accidentally hypnotizes him again mere seconds later. Who's on First? : In many of their routines, of which the trope namer is only the most famous. You Kill It, You Bought It : Parodied in The Wistful Widow of Wagon Gap. References in other works: Jerry Seinfeld referenced them a number of times on his show, most notably when George tries to explain his idea about 'a show about nothing'. He would also produce and star in an NBC special Abbott and Costello Meet Jerry Seinfeld. Looney Tunes parodied them in three cartoons as "Babbit and Catstello".

They also borrowed some of Lou's catch phrases and made them their own, like "I'm only three-and-a-half years old" and Bugs Bunny 's "Gee, ain't I a stinker?" In the "Vintage Steele" episode of Remington Steele a body is found in a vat of wine at the Costello Monastery. When Laura suggests they interview the abbot, Movie buff Steele quips "Ah...the Abbot of Costello". Robin Hood: Men in Tights has a scene where a church abbot is greeted with Costello's catchphrase. Costello lookalike: "HEY ABBOT! Abbot: I hate that guy... If you didn't see some similarities between Ren and Stimpy and Abbott and Costello, you weren't paying close enough attention. 1000+ images about Bud and Lou on Pinterest | Comedy duos, Abbott and costello and Bud abbott Forward Buck Privates is the 1941 comedy/World War II film that turned Bud Abbott and Lou Costello into bona fide movie stars. The comedy team made two more service comedies before the United States entered the war (In the Navy and Keep 'Em Flying).

A sequel to this movie, Buck Privates Come Home, was released in 1947. Buck Privates is one of three Abbott and Costello films featuring The Andrews Sisters, who were also under contract to Universal Pictures at the time. See More Bud Abbott & Lou Costello | Old Movie Teams Weren’t they also in that other movie? Bud Abbott & Lou Costello Bud Abbott and Lou Costello in The Noose Hangs High We all have favorites when it comes to teams in movies and we can certainly argue about the quality of an act and its showmanship when comparing our favorite team to another. But in terms of quantity (and, I’m sure, some will argue, quality), there is no comparison when it comes to the team of Bud Abbott and Lou Costello. For no other comedy team (or any team, for that matter) enjoyed the success Abbott and Costello did.

When speaking of their success, it is perhaps important to emphasize that they were also a team in the movies, having begun their collaborative act in vaudeville (where they first appeared together in 1935 at the Eltinge Burlesque Theater in New York City), and continued on stage, radio, and TV (not to mention movies) for 22 years, formally bringing their comedy act to an end in 1957.

The following is a list of just the feature-length films (36 in all) that featured Abbott and Costello: One Night in the Tropics (1940) Buck Privates (1941) It Ain’t Hay (1943) Lost in a Harem (1944) In Society (1944) Here Come the Co-eds (1945) Bud Abbott and Lou Costello in Hollywood (1945) The Time of Their Lives (1946) Little Giant (1946) The Wistful Widow of Wagon Gap (1947) Buck Privates Come Home (1947) Bud Abbott Lou Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948) The Noose Hangs High (1948) Mexican Hayride (1948) Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff (1949) Africa Screams (1949) Abbott and Costello in the Foreign Legion (1950) Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man (1951) Comin’ Round the Mountain (1951) Jack and the Beanstalk (195

2) Abbott and Costello Meet Captain Kidd (1952) Lost in Alaska (1952) Abbott and Costello Meet Dr.

Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1953) Abbott and Costello Go to Mars (1953) Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy (1955) Abbott and Costello Meet the Keystone Kops (1955) Dance with Me, Henry (1956) Lou Costello and Bud Abbott in Ride ‘Em Cowboy By comparison, Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis as a team were featured in 16 movies (17 if you count their cameos in the Bob Hope and Bing Crosby movie Road to Bali). Mr. Hope and Mr. Crosby similarly appeared together in 17 movies, but only 7 of those movies featured both actors. Their remaining 10 collaborations merely included one and/or the other (mostly Bing Crosby) in a cameo appearance. Like this:

Question: Which duo's films included Rio Rita' and The Wistful Widow of Wagon Gap'?
Answer: Abbott and Costello